A special education legal resource discussing case law, news, practical advocacy advice, and developments in state and federal laws, statutes and regulations. Postings include insight and sometimes humor from Charles P. Fox, a Chicago, Illinois attorney who is also a parent of child with special needs, and other guest authors. Email: [email protected]

October 22, 2014

We are hearing a lot about concussions in the news these days. To the recent disbelief of sports commentators and fans, a University of Michigan football coach left a 20-year-old quarterback in a game after a blow to the head despite his stumbling in the field immediately after impact. Meanwhile, NFL players have regularly been making the news for, to put it delicately, behaving badly. There is speculation that some of the domestic violence in which these players have engaged may be the result of head trauma, a hypothesis deemed plausible by a University of Pennsylvania professor known as a “neurocriminologist.” The fact remains, however, that concussions are traumatic brain injuries. Although most patients with concussions are expected to recover fully, young children and teens, because of their developing brains, along with the elderly, are most vulnerable to the effects of concussion. Thus, these children will need careful monitoring as they return to school and other activities.

July 08, 2013

That you can’t fight city hall is a time-honored truism, but
how much harder does it become when different city halls join forces to fight
you? Parents in Orange County,
California unfortunately are discovering just this fact as they advocate for
services for their children with special needs.
Since 2005, 28 school districts plus the Orange County Department of
Education have formed an alliance, which among other functions, contributes
financially to school districts engaged in legal battles against parents.

The Orange County Special Education Alliance was
ostensibly formed to ally school districts in their ongoing campaign against parents. A single school district is a formidable opponent but fighting a coalition of districts that gives me a headache just to contemplate. Again lets remember they are not the victims of parents in the vast majority of cases.

March 07, 2013

Although it seems almost a contradiction, children can be
both gifted and have special needs, such as learning disabilities. Yet, because of their unique blend of talents
and challenges, these students, known as “twice exceptional” or 2e students,
can be difficult to identify and diagnose.
Often their combinations of intelligence and special needs mask each
other, leaving the child performing at grade-level. Other 2e children have been identified as
learning disabled with teachers who may be unaware of the student’s high
cognition. Conversely, those students
who are identified as gifted but not LD may fail to meet their potential,
leaving them underperforming, frustrated, and often with significant emotional
issues. School districts may label these
students lazy or unmotivated, and it can be difficult for parents to convince
schools that the student has a disability that is affecting their performance
in school.

“Giftedness” is not recognized as a disability under the
Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), and it can be difficult for
some families to obtain special programming for gifted children. Where families live can make a
difference. According to the National
Association for Gifted Children, only about half of states (28 in 2008-2009)
had a mandate to identify gifted children.
How many of these states go further to identify those students who are
both gifted and have a disability is unclear.
Some states, such as Colorado and Idaho, have clear policies
with accompanying guidelines on their websites.
The National Association for Gifted Children has an interesting web page that provides data on gifted education by state, which parents may find
useful.

October 31, 2012

Thanks to Disability Rights Ohio, an Ohio disability organization it is now very easy to be an informed voter on issues effecting people with disabilities. They have put together a side by side comparison chart of the candidate's position on the issues. Now it is obviously time to read it, be informed and vote for the issues that matter to us, our families and people with disabilities that we care about.

October 10, 2012

Over the years the question has come up frequently: how do I become a trained special education advocate ? My answer is usually along the lines of read various books such as material from Pete Wright, attend legal and substantive seminars and apprentice with an exeperienced advocate or attorney. For the first time thanks to the innovative efforts of COPAA, there is finally an advocacy training course being offered. The Special Education Advocate Training (SEAT) is a year-long course that
provides participants with training to become a special education advocate. The
course is based in part on the SEAT Curriculum ® developed through partnership
between COPAA and Children's Hospital of Los Angeles (CHLA) University Center
for Excellence, University of Southern California on a three year demonstration
grant funded by the US Department of Education. The grant funded portion of the
project ended in 2009, resulting in development of a model curriculum for advocacy
training that was vetted through 3 cohorts under the direction of a 10 member
National Advisory Board and members of COPAA's Training Committee - all of whom
are nationally recognized special education advocates.

September 25, 2012

Bill Clinton, in his address to the Democratic convention this month, decried the effects of the proposed Medicaid restructuring on the elderly, the poor, and families with children who have autism, Down syndrome, or other severe disabilities. Clinton, who said that he didn’t know what these families would do under these cuts, asserted that he knew what he would do: “I’m going to do everything I can to see that it doesn’t happen. We can’t let it happen.” We as parents of children with disabilities and those that care about children with disabilities need to vote for the vital interests of our children, and make sure our children with disabilities, who are over 18, register to vote and do vote. Medicaid is just one of the many issues that must be on the radar of voters for this election.Approximately 60 million Americans—including 29.5 million children, 15.2 million adults, 8.2 million people with disabilities, and 6.1 million seniors--rely on Medicaid to meet their health care needs. These numbers include 40% of our nation’s poor, 20% of those with severe disabilities, and nearly two thirds of residents of nursing homes.

September 19, 2012

It is always nice when district's go out of their way to educate parents on the need to provide a 10 day notice prior to making a unilateral placment see
Download 2500_0001. What this notice neglects to inform parents is that the statute carves out certain exceptions to the need to give notice, such as, when the parent is illiterate,the school district "prevented the parent from providing notice" or providing the notice "would likely result in serious emotional harm to the child." 20 USC section 1412(a)(10)(C)(iii)(III)(iv) [the good stuff is always in the fine print]. Nor does this notice inform parents that even if notice is given late, that there is a line of cases that allow for reimbursement after the 10 day notice period has run, or emphasizing that this provision is discretionary using the word "may" not "shall". While I subscribe no ill-intent to this notice, I am sure that it would be used against a parent if they failed to comply with the exact terms, as expressed in the notice, even though it does not fully advise parents of all of their legal rights. Thanks school district (and their attorney who undoubtably drew this form up), but let the parents' attorneys do their job protecting and fully advising parents of their rights.

June 29, 2011

The following is a blog from Marilyn Green-Rebnord, who has been a court appointed special advocate or CASA. In this role she has provided invaluable help to families trying to navigate the special education system. She was also one of the founders and moving forces behind Special Kids, Special Families that for more than a decade provided excellent advice, support and presentations on various topics to help families. While Special Kids has now disbanded she continues to help families as a CASA and working part-time in my office.

February 15, 2011

I am proud to announce that today I have launched the first virtual law office that represents parents of special needs in the area of special education law and guardianship! (This virtual law office will be in addition to my bricks and mortar office in Northbrook, Illinois.) The access point for my virtual law office is my website foxspecialedlaw.com.

Just a few months ago I read about a new concept in the practice of law--Virtual Law Office ("VLO"). As I looked into VLO, I realized that this new way to practice would allow my office to more effectively represent parents nearby, and provide access to those families who are outside of more urban centers who otherwise have not had access to legal services at all. The concept is to offer full service, and more limited representation (the new term is "unbundled services") but still effective legal services (e.g. counseling prior to a meeting, reviewing letters and input statements). I have had numerous encounters with parents where I have given them some critical advice on the phone or reviewed a document that has changed the course of an upcoming meeting in favor of the parent.